Banks joined the SPORTS ILLUSTRATED Group in March 2000 after a distinguished career at newspapers. He covers the NFL year-round and writes the popular SNAP JUDGMENTS during the season. Banks also serves as SI.com's designated mock draft specialist. Not surprisingly, he says the NFL is his favorite sport to cover. "There's nothing that matches it for the intensity of the fan interest and the once-a-week explosion of drama on game day," says Banks. "It's the only sport that makes fans wait so long for their next fix, but that's part of its allure."

Before joining SI.com, Banks covered the Minnesota Vikings for the St. Paul Pioneer Press (1999-00) and the Minneapolis Star Tribune (1996-99). He served as the NFL writer and Tampa Bay Bucs beat reporter for the St. Petersburg Times from 1990 to 1996. From 1984 to 1989, Banks spent time as a copy editor on the Times' main sports desk, and also covered high school sports for the Times in both St. Petersburg and Tampa. He was honored numerous times during his newspaper career, including two Society of Professional Journalists Minnesota Page One Awards (1998 and 2000), two Associated Press Sports Editors awards for news and investigative reporting (1994 and 1997) and a feature writing award from the Florida Sports Writer